Some of the drawbacks of known strap tensioning devices are size, difficulties in holding and operating and the twisting of the straps.
Bailey U.S. Pat. No. 3,804,368, Smetz et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,721 and Chou U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,266 are examples of known prior art ratchet tensioners. They are not easily operated with one hand and do not have an independent turn roll to roll up excess strap.
Soderstrom PCT/SE93/00222 discloses a strap collector in which an internal shaft is rotated by an external handle but there is no ability for the device to be operated by either right or left handed users.